Is the festive season still ‘the fifth quarter’?

Last year, when we did a story on the fifth quarter — the informal name given the Indian festive season — the companies we spoke to were confident and cheerful, much like their consumers. And so this year, we were curious — how was Quarter Five panning out? Was the double whammy of demonetisation and GST still making an impact? To what extent had consumers and categories bounced back? We’ll have to wait a few months before a definitive verdict. But we found in some cases – yes, demonetisation and GST still cast a bit of a pall.

But with their backs to the wall, marketers have arguably deployed sharper strategies than ever before. Along with old favourites like jacket ads and TV blitzes, they are using every trick in the digital and social book to get their audience to bite. Brand Equity spoke to marketers across several categories, and market share positions for a view from the trenches.